The Life of a Loner
by Hikaru Hayashi
Summary: AU: Christine is torn over the disapearance of her father and Erik's conviction. She tries to remain a loner, but 6 months later, she meets Raoul. When Erik gets out of jail, he's not going to stand for this...Rating subject to change. CH.4
1. First Day of School

By Hikaru Hayashi

Story from _Phantom of the Opera_

(I just KNOW I've lost my mind this time. This is a big jump for me)

Hello Phantom of the Opera (a.k.a. POTO) fanfiction readers. After reading other POTO fics and watching the movie heaven knows how many times, I've decided to write my own! I don't know how far this will get, but we'll just see; this is something I just need to get out of my system, or it will tear me apart. So bear with me; this is my first POTO fic!

Here's a full summary:

Summary: (AU) It's been six months since Erik and Christine last saw each other. Since Erik was convicted for a crime he didn't commit and sent to jail, Christine has been so depressed that she decides never to fall in love again, or for that matter, become attached to anyone because of the disappearance of her father almost three years ago. She doesn't want to lose anyone else so she stays indifferent towards everyone, including her best friend Meg, who tries so much to get Christine to open up. Now, Christine and Meg are starting their first year of college and, though she wants to remain a loner to escape the pain of loss, it would appear that she's fallen for someone else… When Erik finally gets out of jail, how will he take this? Romance Triangle: ErikxChristinexRaoul

Disclaimer note: I don't own Phantom of the Opera. Meaning I own nothing affiliated with Phantom of the Opera, including Erik, Christine, Raoul, and Meg. I don't even own the name. I am not getting paid for writing this. Yeah, I know: Boo-friggin'-hoo, but oh well. C'est la vie.

So let's start (oh, god, I suck with titles).

The Life of a Loner

Chapter 1: First Day of School

_Christine…Christine…Christine, wake up…!_

Christine Daae groggily opened her eyes to a bright morning and her friend Meg Giry's smiling face. She sat up and stared at her friend, wondering why she woke her up this early.

"Meg…what's going on…? Why so early…?"

"Don't tell me you've forgotten!" Meg chirped. The sunlight coming through the window made her blonde hair and blue eyes sparkle. "It's the first day of school! Aren't you excited?"

"Nope…" Christine said as she reluctantly got out of bed. She never did like school. The only class she really liked was choir. The rest she could do without.

"Christine…"

Christine looked up. Meg was staring her in the eye. "Something's bothering you. Please tell me what it is."

Christine ignored her.

"Please Christine! I am your best friend and room mate after all."

(Personally, she would have rather had her own dorm room, but Meg insisted on sharing with her.)

Christine just walked to the closet to pull out an outfit. "I don't want to talk about it…" she muttered.

_Christine…how could you…I thought you loved me!_

Christine shivered. _I did love him…_she thought as she tried to brush this off. _His voice won't get out of my head…! Oh, Erik…_

Christine! Christine, how could you let this happen to me!

"There was nothing I could do…" she muttered to herself. "There was nothing I could do…! It was out of my hands…"

_Christine, why! Why didn't you do anything! _

She remembered everything from that day…the trial…the sentence…the type of cologne the judge was wearing…when it was her turn to speak for Erik's defense…everything…it was a day she wouldn't easily forget…it was the day she let him down.

"It's all my fault, Meg…" Christine sighed. "It's all my fault that Erik is in jail…if only I could have stood up for him better…" 

Meg put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "You did what you could," she said as comforting as possible. "What matters is that you tried your best to defend him…"

_That's why he was so mad at me as they took him away…_Christine thought bitterly.

"Come on, Christine," Meg said as she grabbed her purse and her books. "Let's go…"

"All right, I'm coming…" Christine said as she picked up her books and left behind Meg, locking the door behind her.

Before she knew it, Meg had left her behind. "I'm going to get an early start so I can find our classes," she had said. "Fine," Christine had answered and sat down on a bench. The next time she looked up, Meg was nowhere to be found.

_Crud,_ Christine thought. _She knows I don't remember where any of those classrooms are…except the choir room…shoot…_ She figured if she didn't want to be late she'd better start running. So she did…and wasn't watching where she was going, let alone did she know where she was going. While she was running, she tripped over a tree root that was bulging out of the ground. She closed her eyes as she prepared for impact with the ground.

When she didn't hit the ground, she opened her eyes, confused. She was even more confused when she heard a voice speak to her:

"Hey there, be careful! I understand you must be in quite a hurry…"

She realized that someone had caught her and stopped her from falling. She looked up into the face of the man whose arms she had just fallen into. She looked up at two friendly blue eyes and a warm smile, and instantly, she felt her cheeks turn red. "Uh…uh…" was all she could say.

The man, who appeared to be only a year older than her, making him a sophomore and the same age as Erik, chuckled. "Are you flattered?" he asked.

Christine blushed even more. She had only heard him speak two sentences, yet she loved the sound of his voice. And she loved his laugh. It made her feel happy and peaceful. "Uh…yeah…a little…I guess…"

Almost at once, she backed away from him. _What am I doing…?_ she thought as she stared at the ground. _I swore to myself I would never fall in love again because of what happened to Erik…so why…do I feel so attached to this man I've only just met…? _

The man frowned to see Christine so upset. "What seems to be the trouble?" he asked.

"I…" she started, still staring at the ground. "I…I don't remember where any of my classes are…you see, I'm new here…"

"Oh, I see," he said as chuckled a little. "Are you a freshman?"

"Is it that obvious…?" Christine asked, disappointed.

"Yeah, kind of…" the man replied. "Don't worry. I'll help you. Which class are you on your way to?"

"Do you know where room 274 is?"

The man smiled. "Not only do I know where it is, but I was on my way there myself. Come on, I'll take you, if you don't mind."

"Yes! I mean, no! I mean, sure, why not!" Christine replied immediately as she took his hand. The problem was that she really did mind; she couldn't afford to get involved. She wanted to stay a loner. After her father disappeared, Erik was the only person she had. But now that he was gone too, she figured she was just meant to be a loner and decided not to get involved with anyone else.

But she couldn't refuse his smiling face…his gorgeous eyes…his beautiful shoulder-length brown hair…normally, she didn't like guys with long hair…but she loved everything about this man. She felt comfort from hearing the sound of his voice…and she didn't like it. Part of her did, but the other part of her wanted to stay a loner. _I can't get involved…_she thought.

She was aroused from her thoughts by the sound of his voice:

"We're here," he said, smiling. "I hope you weren't spacing out; I don't want you to get lost next time."

"Okay, I won't. Thanks…" she replied, though she knew she was spacing out and she wasn't really paying attention. Before they walked into class, Christine blurted out, "I'm Christine Daae…um, what's your name?"

"Christine…" the man repeated. "What a pretty name!"

Christine blushed.

"My name is Raoul de Chagny. It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Daae!"

Christine blushed even more. It's not every day you meet a guy who has good looks and manners. She liked everything she knew about him so far, which wasn't much, seeing as how they just met. She even found that she liked his name. She found herself becoming more and more attracted to this man called Raoul every second. And she didn't like it.

As they were walking into class, a familiar voice greeted them:

"Christine Daae, where in the world have you been!"

Christine looked up to see her friend Meg, apparently in the same class as her and Raoul. "Oh…hi Meg…" she said. To Raoul, "This is my friend and room mate, Meg Giry."

Raoul nodded. "Nice to meet you, Miss Giry…"

"And who…" Meg interrupted, "is this fine-looking gentleman? Christine! Could it be that you've found a new boyfriend? And didn't tell me! Oh, Christine! I'm so happy for you!" she cheered as clapped her hands.

"Actually, we've only just met a while ago…we're just friends…" Raoul said, his face turning scarlet at the thought of having been called Christine's "boyfriend".

Christine blushed at the thought of just merely being his "friend". She knew **that** wouldn't last long because she knew her feelings for him were deeper than that, even thought they just met…and she didn't want them to be. She really did want her and Raoul to be "just friends", maybe not even that. Even so, she just brushed it off, muttering loudly, "Shut up, Meg…"

Meg just giggled.

End Chapter One

And that's the end of that. I don't know how this is, but that's why I have people like you to tell me how I'm doing and what I should be doing and stuff like that. My only worry is that the characters don't seem too OOC. I'm trying to be as character-accurate as possible, even though the fic is AU. For my fic to work, I need the characters' personalities to be as accurate as possible (and if Christine doesn't seem so, she will soon, I promise).

Anyway, just let me know in your review how I'm doing and whether or not I should bother updating (and please, NO FLAMES).


	2. Zoning Out

By Hikaru Hayashi

Wow. This story went over better than I expected (which was not at all). Thanks to all those 3 people who reviewed Chapter 1!

**Kagome1514: **My first reviewer! Yippee-skippy! Do you realize I didn't expect you to read this at all because of the dominant pairing in the story? I know you are the E/C fan. Don't worry about it though. There will be quite a bit of E/C in this story, and, unlike you with your fics, I _won't_ be too upset to write it! (Not wanting to write something for a trivial reason, as that is the mark of a not-so-flexible writer, which ultimately effects how you write. Don't be that way! You're too good of a writer for that. Speaking of, don't you need to update Love of Music…::hint, hint: I like Love of Music!) You may not know this about me, but I don't bash either. NO ERIK BASHING! AREN'T YOU HAPPY? Yeah, I know. I'm too nice.

**Countess Alana: **(You know, I know someone who spells it "Alannah"! Funny, huh?) "Maybe I should go pay his bail…." This was funny! I loved this comment! I hope you continue to enjoy the story. By the way, I will try to get Erik out of jail within the next 3 or 4 chapters or so (Keyword: "try"). But he will get out!

**pearheart:** Hi! You too? This is just getting better. I hope you continue reading also.

**Disclaimer note:** I don't really wanna say it again. I thought I summed it up good in the first chap. Oh well. I don't own POTO...at all.

Chapter 2: Zoning Out 

All through class, Christine found herself distracted in her thoughts and not paying attention at all, which wasn't good, considering that she was an honors student in high school and just happened to be sitting in advanced Physics class. She kept on thinking about whether or not they would ever find her father…if he was still alive. She kept on thinking about her poor Erik sitting in that dark, gloomy prison cell. And, what's worse, she tried not to let her eyes wander around her strange new classroom, because every time she did, her eyes would focus on the back of the head of the person sitting in the next row down in front of her. And that person happened to be Raoul.

She didn't know why she felt so attracted towards him. She couldn't keep herself from staring at him. Once, he even turned his head when the person next to him asked him a question and Christine was once again captivated by his crystal eyes. She shook it off as quickly as possible. _Darn it… _she thought, _can I really be that shallow…?_ A few moments later, she was startled by a tap on her shoulder, followed by Meg whispering:

"Hey, what gives, Christine? Are you okay? You just kinda spaced out…"

"I'm fine," she whispered back.

"Yeah, right!" Meg shot back. "That's why you keep staring at Mr. Handsome over there, right?"

"Huh? Who?"

"You know! That good-looking Monsieur de Chagny…"

At this point, Christine wanted to smack the crap out of Meg. Her face turned scarlet as she snapped, "Shut your trap, Meg…!"

"Is there something you'd like to share with the class, Miss Daae?" came the teacher's voice from the front of the room.

"Uh…no…" she replied; she felt her face turn even redder as the entire class stared at her for a moment. She caught a look of concern in Raoul's eyes. "Talk to me after class," he mouthed to her.

She nodded, letting him know that she understood.

**(After class…) **

Christine walked out of the classroom. Raoul was standing right at the door.

"Hey there," he greeted. "So, what's wrong? You seemed distracted. I'm worried about you, Miss Daae."

"No, I'm fine," Christine said shyly. "You really don't have to worry about me. And, please, call me Christine! I won't mind."

_I only wish I could…_Raoul thought to himself. "Anyway, will you have trouble getting to your next class too?"

"No thanks. I'm pretty sure I know where the choir room is!" Christine said as she winked at Raoul. _Why did I just do that? _ she thought immediately.

"Well, okay," Raoul said. "Then, I'll see you later?"

"Maybe," Christine replied. _I can't believe I just said that…_ "Bye, Raoul!" she said as she ran off. "And thanks again!" _God help me! I hope Erik doesn't get out of jail anytime soon. I don't think I could face him after today! _

Raoul watched Christine as she walked away. He sighed. He admired her so much. After all, she was sweet, though she seemed kind of shy, she was kind, she was very pretty, and she's musical. He found her rather attractive. When he found himself admiring her good looks as she got farther and farther away from him, he struggled to keep himself from running after her. _Argh…what am I doing…_he thought.

He smacked himself. _Get a grip on yourself, de Chagny! You know she's way out of your league. Besides, someone as pretty as her probably already has a boyfriend…but still…she is very pretty… … …shoot. This is why I can't call her by her first name…at least not to her face…I wonder if she likes me? Maybe that's why she acts so shy around me…does she know I like her too…?…No! I can't…_

Raoul sighed as he walked away, but not before looking back at Christine's disappearing figure. "Oh, Christine…" he sighed. "She's so pretty…"

"Excuse me! Don't wanna be late!" Came Meg's voice as she rushed by Raoul, bringing him back to reality. _That reminds me…If I don't hurry, I'll be late too!_

Meg looked back at him once and noticed the spacey look on his face. _What's up with him?_ she thought as she rushed to catch up with Christine.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

As Christine sat in choir, she found herself surprisingly bored. The first day usually was boring for her, but after that she was fine. She even caught herself falling asleep and Meg had to nudge her awake several times. "What gives, Christine?" she asked while the choir teacher was not paying attention; the band director had just walked into the room and they stopped to chat. "What is your deal today?"

"What? No, I'm fine. Thanks anyway..." Christine muttered as she stared out of the window. Normally, she liked choir, but she was really out of it today. _It's all because of that Raoul, darn it all…_ she thought. _This is all his fault! … Aw…who the heck am I fooling? Just yourself, my friend._

"Are you sure you're okay, Christine?" Meg asked, her voice bringing Christine back to reality. "I mean, are you sure you're not sick or anything?"

Christine did not get the chance to reply. The choir instructor was done with her side conversation with the band director and immediately started the class of on some scales to work on for the remaining twenty-five minutes of class.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

As Christine and Meg walked out of the choir room (with Meg grumbling about how that was the most boring first day of choir ever), Christine noticed a group of students with art pads. _Oh…art students…maybe they're art majors…_ Now that she thought about it, she didn't really have a major yet. She walked towards the group of students with the intent on asking them about their major since she didn't have one yet.

Meg followed closely behind, wondering what Christine was up to, especially since she stopped dead in her tracks before taking even a few steps. "Now, what is it?" Meg sighed impatiently. "God, you are acting so weird today, Christine!"

_Oh no…I can't…_ she thought when she noticed that one of the art students was Raoul.

Meg seemed to notice as well. "Hey, check it out, Christine!" she said, nudging her friend on the elbow. "Raoul is an art major! He's good-looking **and** talented!" She grinned slyly. "Go talk to him, Christine."

"_What? _No! I don't want to!"

"Christine, I know you like him."

_Pfah. Where on earth did she get **that** idea? _

"Don't be so shy! Go talk to him. He seems nice. I'm sure he likes you a lot."

_Ha ha ha. Very funny…_

"So? What are you waiting for?" Meg said as she pulled Christine along. "Don't take all day!"

One of the art students turned around and looked at Meg and Christine. "Hey, what's with them? Why the heck are they just looking at us like that?"

"Maybe they're freshmen…" an older girl said.

"Hm! They're cute," one of the older boys said as he put down his art pad.

"Aww…shucks…" Meg said. "You really shouldn't…"

Raoul looked up. "Who are you talking about?" he said. Then he gasped. "Oh…!...Um… …H-hello again, Miss Daae…Miss Giry…!"

"Do you know them, Raoul?" the older girl asked. "Are they friends of yours?"

"Yep! You bet!" Meg said triumphantly. "We go back quite a ways."

"Miss Giry…please…" Raoul mumbled as he started to blush. "Don't over-exaggerate…"

"And why do you never call us by our first names?" Meg asked. "You are just too much of a gentleman for my taste."

"Yeah, he is kinda proper…you girls wanna know a secret?" the girl asked.

Christine refused politely. Gossip really wasn't her thing. Meg however, jumped forward. "Oh yes!"

"Well, I don't know if it's true or not, but I've heard that Raoul's parents have quite a bit of money."

"Oh…so he's like a prince?" Meg asked excitedly.

"Well, I wouldn't say that, but I do know that he is the heir to a huge sum of money. His parents are…like…rich. I mean, they are so wealthy; it's not even funny. Don't tell him I told you, though. He doesn't like to talk about it. He just wants to be normal like everyone else."

"I see…" Meg mumbled. "I'd like to be rich…Oh and speaking of rumors! Hey, Raoul, did you know that Christine likes you?"

"_MEG!"_ Christine shouted angrily as her face turned a dark scarlet.

Everyone was quiet. The silence was deafening. Christine glared at Meg. "I'm going to kill you…" she mouthed. Meg just shrugged. "Well, you do like him!" she said, speaking the first words in about a minute. "You **do** like him, don't you?"

"You guys, I'm gonna go get a soda. Who's coming with me?" The boy from before said quickly as he got up. "You'd better come too, Meg."

Meg got the drift immediately. "I get it…" then to Christine. "Well, let's leave you two alone for awhile…you know, give you some space." She giggled as she left with the other art students.

"Wait! Meg!" Christine moaned. "Don't leave me alone with him!"

"Don't worry about a thing, Christine!" Meg shouted back. "Just be yourself! Good luck!"

_Great…just perfect…_she thought as she glared at Meg's back, muttering about how she was going to find a way to get even with her. She looked over at Raoul. He was staring at the ground; his face turned even redder than Christine's.

"Well, this is just great," she sighed. _Meg set this up on purpose…I am going to get her! _ Even though she was very mad, she put on her best happy face. "Well, Raoul, it's just you and me now, thanks to Meg."

Raoul didn't answer. He just continued to stare at the ground.

_Oh, boy…_ Christine thought as she sighed. _This is a fine mess I'm in…what am I supposed to say to him? Why am I panicking? Oh, God, help me…!_

End Chapter Two

A/N: The end of chapter two. Yeah, I know, I just had to end it there. I seem to have a knack for ending chapters in weird places.

But, anyway, you wonderful people out there can tell me what you thought of this chapter by reviewing. (Yes, review! Please review! No flames, please!)


	3. The End of the Darkness

By Hikaru Hayashi

I'm back with the next chapter. I wonder how this story is coming off to other people? I'm curious. Is it not good enough to review? If you read, please review! Thank you.

Good news for E/C fans, Erik will be in this chapter::Erik fangirls scream their heads off: How pathetic. (I'm kidding! Dang…Besides, I'd be a hypocrite anyway…) Ehem…anyway…!

**A note about Erik: **His face is not messed up yet! That doesn't come into play until later in the story. So for now, his face is normal (which, I'm sure, will be a scream for some of you "fangirls" out there).

**Kagome1514:** Once again, my first reviewer! There must be a trend or something. Oh, don't worry. There is going to be plenty of tension between Erik and Raoul later on in the story. I think you'll enjoy that. :winks: I don't mind short reviews either. All the reviews I get are fairly short anyway, so don't worry about it!

**pearheart:** As you now know, Daae is Christine's last name and Giry is Meg's. I hope that clears everything up for you. Continue to enjoy the story!

**shamaho:** You don't like R/C, and yet you're reading my story? Wow! I'm flattered! I hope you continue to read. Don't worry. There's gonna be plenty of E/C in later chapters.

**Countess Alana: **Yay! You came back! I love your reviews. They're so funny. Yeah, I guess Raoul was kind of just being Raoul, huh? I've never seen Van Helsing, but if you'd still like me to read your story, I will most definitely try. Erik using the prison bars as a xylophone…lol! That was funny.

Also, another shout-out to **Kagome1514** for being my beta-reader. Thanks a lot! **(EVERYBODY READ HER STORIES! And make sure to leave her a nice review or I will hunt you down!)**

Disclaimer note: Nope, I don't own it. Not at all.

Chapter 3: The End of the Darkness

Christine officially wanted to clobber Meg. She purposely set this up so she could be alone with Raoul. _What is Meg thinking? She knows Erik is my boyfriend! What is she trying to do? _She sighed. "Oh, great…" she muttered.

"I'm sorry, Miss Daae…" came Raoul's voice. Christine looked at him as he picked up his sketchbook and his backpack. "My friends…they can be a bit…weird…sometimes…I'm so sorry…I…I know you don't want to talk to me, so I'll leave…" He turned to leave.

"Wait, Raoul…" Christine called.

He stopped and turned around.

Christine smiled. _Might as well make the most of this…_ she thought as she offered, "Hey, you wanna go get a frappaccino?"

Raoul smiled bashfully. "Uh…o-okay," he stammered as Christine grabbed his arm and they walked off.

Meg, who was watching from behind some bushes, smiled and snickered. _Hee hee…perfect! _ she thought slyly.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

A prison guard mumbled as he patrolled down the hallways of the county prison, making sure that the prisoners were in line and not causing trouble. The poor man hated his job. _Nothing to do all day but watch these hooligans and let them get on my nerves…_ he thought as he reached the last cell in the row.

"Number 4883, Erik Mulheim, the warden wants to see you."

The young man in the cell looked up; his normally blue eyes shone a tint of light green. It was pretty dark, but he liked the dark, and he could tell it was just another prison guard here to harass him. But, the _warden_ wanted to see him? What had he done? It's bad enough that he hadn't done anything wrong to get in jail in the first place. He just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Erik stood up. _The warden wants to see me? _he thought, confused. _I haven't done anything! _ Still, as the prison guard opened the door to his cell, he followed obediently. This had been the first time he had been let out for anything other than meals; they usually kept him locked up.

So many thoughts rushed through his head. He thought back to the night when he was caught with a gun he didn't own and the body of a man he didn't kill. He remembered the police dragging him away as he tried to say it wasn't him. He remembered the questions, the accusations, the trial…

Ah…yes, the trial…the last time he wore a decent suit…the last time he saw daylight…normal people…the last time he saw his precious Christine's face…_"Oh, Christine…" _he sighed in despair, wondering if he'd ever see her again. _I miss her so much…_ Yes, he had learned the life of a loner…he had learned to make the most of being alone…but he couldn't help the constantly reappearing image of his darling Christine. It almost made him want to cry at the thought of never seeing her again.

The prison guard led him to the lobby of the warden's office. "Now, you just wait here," he said warily as he walked into the warden's office. _"God, I hate my job," _he complained silently as he walked in.

Erik looked around. He had never been anywhere near the warden's office. He had no idea what it looked like until now, and this was just the lobby. The sunlight that poured through the huge windows blinded him. He'd almost forgotten what sunlight looked like.

When he had gained his sight back, he looked around, able to see clearly without darkness shrouding everything for the first time in six months. He was standing on a red rug lined with a pattern of gold. He couldn't make out what the pattern was, but it was very beautiful. There was a water cooler, a snack machine, and a soda machine in one corner of the room. What an interesting set up, he thought.

But the thing that caught his attention the most was a grand piano situated by one of the huge windows in the south wall. It was as if a magical force pulled him towards it, because he began walking towards the grand piano, without even realizing it. He'd completely forgotten that he was a prisoner as soon as he sat down. He hadn't seen a piano in months and felt compelled to play a familiar melody that just jumped into his head. Without even thinking, his hands took control of him as he played the melody in his head.

As he finished the song, he heard clapping. Startled, he swirled around to see the warden and the prison guard from before.

"Bravo, Mulheim!" The warden cheered as he clapped madly. "I knew you were good! After all, that's the reason I called you here."

Erik stood up as he realized what was going on. The warden **wanted** him to play. For what reason was beyond him.

"I've heard stories. I had heard of your exceptional skills, and your record says you're a music major, but I never thought you'd be **that** good! Why, you're practically a musical genius!"

"Well, I've been playing since I was very little," Erik answered a bit shyly.

"Wow!" The warden squealed like a woman. "Excellent! You must be a prodigy!"

"No, I'm not. Really. I just practiced a lot, that's all…"

"Oh NO! Don't be so modest. I'll tell you what, Mulheim. If you'll play for me on request for a few weeks, I might consider your release. I need a good source of entertainment."

Erik jumped up. He had always known that he loved his music. This request just reinforced this love. "A-alright! I will!" he replied.

"YAY!" The warden squealed as he jumped up and down. "I'll let you know when I want you to play for me, alright, Mulheim?"

"Okay…" he said, looking at the warden warily, as the prison guard took him out of the warden's lobby. He couldn't help but think that the man was half crazy.

Erik beamed as he was being led back to his cell, back to the darkness. It didn't matter anymore. If he played for the warden a few times, he would be let out. He could continue his music and his education, and most importantly, he could be with his Christine once more.

"_Oh, Christine!" _he sighed, not in despair this time, but in happy relief. He would get out soon and none of this would matter anymore.

As the guard locked him in his dark cell once more (once again grumbling about how much he hated his job), Erik walked to the makeshift iron bar window that didn't let in much sun. He looked out at what appeared to be the sky. It didn't look so far away anymore. With every ounce of happiness in him ready to explode, he shouted _"I'm coming, Christine!" _

He knew the prisoners were staring at him. He didn't care. The only thing that mattered to him now was getting out and seeing Christine again.

_Wow…that poor guy…_ the prison guard thought as he walked away. _This Christine must mean a lot to him…_ He thought about his wife back home. Understanding Erik's feelings, for the first time all day, the guard smiled.

End Chapter Three

Not much to say here except end of the chapter and please, Please, PLEASE review!


	4. An Old Acquaintance

By Hikaru Hayashi

Wow, by going by the hit counter, you can really tell the fans. **The fans actually take the time to review!** That means all the rest are lazy bums (or "moochers", courtesy of **Kagome1514**) not worthy to lay eyes on this work.

**Note to audience: If you're going to read, please take the time to review. Thank you very much…have a nice day. : )**

**Kagome1514:** Once again the first reviewer! You like that, I'm sure. Yes, Erik will be appearing from now till the end of the story! I'm sure everyone would like that. And when you close, I don't really mind what closing you use, since I am quite illiterate in French anyway, I don't think it would matter. It _is _interesting to think of Erik as not…um…messed-up, so to speak. (His face, I mean, as to correct myself because I was tempted to say "messed up in the head"…heh, heh…j/k)

**shamaho:** I love AU fics too! They're just so awesome, especially when done the right way. Actually, unless I really put my mind to it, I naturally write AU. The reason Christine never went to see Erik is because she knew that he would not get out of jail for a long time and probably wouldn't remember her anyway when he got out, so she wanted to forget about him, even though she never could. Of course, she's going to see him again sooner than she had expected…way sooner…heh, heh…

**Countess Alana:** I'm glad you're enjoying the story even more now that Erik is in it. Don't worry, you'll be seeing lots of him, I guarantee it. It's very rare that I get to update so quickly, so please don't get used to it. I don't want to disappoint you in the future.

**pearheart: **I'm glad you think my story is great. I hope you continue to enjoy it! It will only get better from here.

**Disclaimer note:** I own no part of "The Phantom of the Opera" in any way. Kindly remember this before trying to arrest me.

And thanks to my beta-reader **Kagome1514** for giving the correct spelling of "frappuccino".

Chapter 4: An Old Acquaintance 

Christine looked across the street from the Starbucks she was sitting at with Raoul. She took her straw and twirled it around in her mocha hazelnut frappuccino, making sure to mix up the coffee and the whipped cream really good before taking a sip. Raoul had ordered a caramel mocha frappuccino, but he had hardly touched it. Christine found it so odd that even though it was she who had invited him, he graciously volunteered to pay for the drinks and insisted that it was no problem, no matter how much Christine tried to convince him otherwise. Meg was right. He was far too much of a gentleman.

_Actually, I never used to think that anyone could be too courteous, _she thought as she stared out the window at the mountain view. _ Of course, that was before I met Raoul…I mean, he's nice…but that's just it. _ _He's **too** nice._

She turned her attention from the view of the mountains to Raoul sitting across from her. He was still staring at the ground. He had been staring at the ground almost the whole time. Surely he could think of a far better use for his gorgeous crystal eyes than staring at the ground. She would rather them be on her than the dusty linoleum. She suddenly stopped, realizing what she just thought. _No, what am I doing…?_she thought. She sighed as she placed an elbow on the round table before her.

"Is something the matter, Miss Daae?" came Raoul's voice.

_Is something the matter with **you**?_ Christine wanted to say. "No," she replied. "I'm fine."

_At least he's not staring at the ground anymore. _

"Are you gonna drink that?" she asked, motioning to his frappuccino.

"Hm? Oh…uh…I am," he replied quickly as he took a sip

_That's why it's still full…_ she thought. She sighed again. "Look, you don't have to be so quiet, you know."

"No…I…" Raoul started. His eyes fell to the floor once again.

_Great… _Christine sighed.

"Um…Miss Daae…" Raoul muttered. "I…I know you don't want to be here with me…"

He picked up his book bag and his frappuccino and stood up. "I'm sorry my friends and Miss Giry forced you to stay with me…it's alright if you don't like me…really…"

Christine looked up at him. _He thinks I don't like him? That might explain the way he's been acting. _

She smiled. "Wanna go to the mall with me and Meg tomorrow after school?" she offered.

"If...if it's not too much trouble…" Raoul's voice faltered as he spoke.

"Nah! It's good," Christine replied as she stood up. "Come on, let's get back to school. I've got a class in, like, ten minutes."

"Okay…" Raoul answered as he followed Christine out the door.

_I wonder what Erik is up to right now… _Christine thought as they crossed the parking lot.

_I hope they're not being too mean to him…he's so far away…I don't have my license yet so it's not like I can go visit him…no! I promised myself I would forget him. It's not like I'll ever see him again anyway…besides, it's my fault he's in jail in the first place…._

She suddenly heard Meg's voice in her head, repeating a phrase she'd heard from her a lot: _"Christine, you've gotta quit beating yourself up about that. It wasn't your fault!" _

_Says you…_Christine thought. Lost in her thoughts, she stopped in the middle of the parking lot, unaware of the car that was approaching.

"Darn it...why do I keep thinking about that…" she mumbled, unaware that she was about to be hit by a car that showed no signs of stopping…

"_Look out, Miss Daae!" _

Before Christine had the chance to figure out what was going on, she felt herself being pushed to the ground and, unknowingly, out of harm's way. She fell flat on her backside. She heard a car screech…then a voice:

"Oh, goodness! Are you two alright?"

She opened her eyes. A man with dark hair was staring at her as if he'd done something terribly wrong. She then noticed that Raoul was sprawled out on top of her. "What's going on…" she started to say, when she heard Raoul moaning. He lifted his head and stared into her eyes.

"Are you hurt, Miss Daae?" he asked in a concerned tone.

"Uh…uh…" was all she could get out, as she found herself entranced by his gaze.

"Ehem, hello? Are you alright?" the man from before asked.

Raoul blinked, then noticed he was still on top of Christine. "Oh! S-sorry about that…!" he stammered, blushing, as he quickly stood up and brushed himself off. "Here," he said as he offered Christine his hand to help her up.

She took his hand and felt herself being lifted from the ground. "Raoul…" she started, "what just happened?"

"You were almost hit by that car…" he replied. "You need to be more careful! If I hadn't knocked you out of the way…God knows what would have happened to you. Thank Heaven you're safe…" he sighed as he hugged her.

This startled her. She understood he was worried about her. "I'm fine, Raoul, really…" she said as she hugged him back, surprising herself. _Why am I doing this? _she thought.

"Excuse me," the man from before interrupted. "Um…are you and your girlfriend alright?"

Immediately, Raoul blushed as he pushed her away. "Yes…we're fine," he replied as he stared at the ground, startled at himself for acknowledging that Christine was his "girlfriend".

Christine looked up at the man who had almost run her down…and, surprisingly, she recognized him. "Nadir? Is that you?"

The man responded to her call. He gasped. "Oh, crap! I almost ran over Christine Daae! I'm so sorry, Christine!" he said as he ran to her.

Christine smiled widely. "It is you, Nadir! It's been such a long time; I almost didn't recognize you…!"

"Which I find funny," the man called Nadir said. "Because it's pretty darn hard not to recognize a pretty face such as yours."

"Oh, stop it! You flatter me!" Christine joked. Her smile dropped suddenly. "Um…h-have you seen Erik recently?"

"No," Nadir replied. "I just came back from the prison. Would you believe how rude those men were! They wouldn't even let me see him!"

"No!" Christine gasped in disbelief.

"Yeah," Nadir growled under his breath. "Some manners, huh? No one's been allowed to see him for 6 months. I should know; I've been trying to see him for 6 months! Can you believe that? All this over a guy who didn't do anything wrong." Nadir sighed. "Poor Erik. Sure hope he's alright."

"Poor Erik…" Christine echoed. "Oh, poor Erik…" She sighed heavily. She was almost glad that she didn't try to go and see him now that she knew that she wouldn't have been able to see him anyway.

Nadir patted Christine's shoulder. "Hey, everything will be fine. I'm sure he'll find a way to get out of this mess. He always finds a way…"

As Raoul stared over at the two friends, he felt as though he were eavesdropping into their conversation. _Who's Erik…? _he thought, even though he knew deep down that it was none of his business.

"In any case, I'm sorry I almost hit you," Nadir said. Then he started to laugh. "So, I take it the young man isn't your boyfriend after all!"

"Oh, Raoul? Nah, we're just good friends," she replied as she winked at Raoul.

Raoul, who was staring at the ground, didn't notice. He wasn't even listening. I don't understand… he thought, confused. Who is Erik?

"Hey, you guys want me to give you a ride?" Nadir offered.

"No, it's okay. We're not that far, we can walk. Come on, Raoul!" Christine said as she dragged off a confused Raoul de Chagny.

"Well…uh…okay…bye…I guess…" Nadir stammered as they went off, a bit disappointed that they couldn't talk longer after not seeing each other in six months.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Early the next day, in the county jail, a prison guard patrolled the halls. _I hate my job_… he thought, frustrated.

He stopped at the last cell in the row. "Good morning, Mulheim. The warden wants to see you."

No reply. "Yo, Mulheim! The warden wants to see you."

Still no reply. The guard sighed. He blew a whistle. "Yo, Mulheim!" A loud bump.

"_Oof!" _

"Huh?" the guard said in a confused tone as Erik pulled himself off of the ground.

"Okay…that was really painful…" Erik moaned as he rubbed his back

_Oh…I guess he was still asleep…_the guard thought, now feeling a bit guilty for having to wake him up. "Mulheim, the warden wants to see you."

Erik looked up at the guard. _Well, that was pretty fast…_he thought as the prison guard opened the door to his cell. He yawned, stretched his arms, and walked out of his cell, rubbing the back of his head and muttering, "It's too early in the morning…" As he was walking out, the guard spoke to him:

"Hey, Mulheim. I believe you're innocent. Those punks in the courthouses with their fancy suits, well, they don't believe anybody. And, after what I heard yesterday…well, that was some amazing piano playing."

"Thank you," Erik replied as the guard was leading him away.

"So, could you tell me more about this Christine?"

Erik looked at the guard in shock. "What…?" he said, stopping in his tracks.

"I kinda heard you talking to yourself yesterday," the guard confessed. "I know exactly how you feel. So, what's she like, anyway?"

Erik smiled, a bit relieved, but also, a bit confused. Of all the questions the guard could have asked him…but, even so, he told the guard about his darling Christine and how much he missed her.

They talked until they got to the door of the warden's office. "Well, this is it. I can't take you any farther. Warden's orders."

Erik stared at the guard. "You mean I have to go into that crazy man's office by myself? You have **got **to be kidding me..."

"Nope! Not kidding. Sorry…" the guard said as he started to walk away.

"Wait…what is your name?" Erik called after him.

"It's Johnson. Good luck, Mulheim! (You'll need it!)"

Erik stared at the guard as he walked away. _Well, this is perfect. _He thought. He really didn't want to be alone with the warden. That guy was a few measures short of a musical composition. In his opinion, the man belonged in an asylum. However, if he wanted to get out of prison and see Christine again, he'd have to keep his opinions to himself. "Well, here goes nothing…" he said as he pushed open the door to the warden's office and walked in…

End Chapter Four

I'm sorry, this took longer that I wanted it to. And my updating time will be badly shortened for the next few weeks because of band camp. But, even so, I will try to update (even if it's late at night).

In the meantime, tell me what you thought of this chapter. Please, please review!


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